Gulbis, Three Frenchmen Reach Marseille QFs

Marseille, France

Third seed Ernests Gulbis advanced to his third ATP World Tour quarter-final of the year on Thursday at the Open 13 in Marseille as he battled past Roberto Bautista Agut 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. The Latvian dropped serve in the 12th game of the second set, but recovered to claim victory in two hours and 15 minutes.

The 25-year-old Gulbis is coming off a semi-final showing in Rotterdam (l. to Berdych) and improved to a 7-3 match record on the season. In the past 12 months, Gulbis has seen his Emirates ATP Ranking rise from No. 109 to No. 23 and is looking to crack the Top 20 for the first time.

Eighth seed Nicolas Mahut hit 12 aces and lost just four of his first service points in a 7-6(5), 6-3 victory over qualifier Ricardas Berankis in 89 minutes. He goes on to face Gulbis.

"Today I played much better than yesterday," said Mahut, who is on the verge of a return to the Top 40 in the Emirates ATP Rankings for the first time since 2008. "I’m happy that I managed to win in two sets and I’m also satisfied with my game.

"One year ago my goal was to be back in the Top 100. At the beginning of 2013, after the Australian Open, I was not sure if my career could continue and if my knee was going to be OK. Today, I have a great team around me with my physio and my two coaches, Thierry Ascione and Nicolas Escude."